President Trump fires FBI Director James Comey

Posted: 5:51 pm Tuesday, May 9th, 2017

By Staff Writer

The White House announced Tuesday afternoon that President Donald Trump had fired FBI Director James Comey, stemming from what the Justice Department labeled as his mishandling of the investigation into the emails of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Comey’s termination came as he was leading a probe into possible collusion between associates of Mr. Trump and Russia, centering on Russian interference in the 2016 elections. Just yesterday in a tweet, the President had called the probe a “total hoax.”

“The FBI is one of our Nation’s most cherished and respected institutions and today will mark a new beginning for our crown jewel of law enforcement,” said President Trump.

BREAKING: White House announces President Donald Trump has fired FBI Director James Comey.

“While I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation, I nevertheless concur with the judgment of the Department of Justice that you are not able to effectively lead the bureau,” the President wrote.

“I cannot defend the Director’s handling of the conclusion of the investigation of Secretary Clinton’s emails, and I do not understand his refusal to accept the nearly universal judgment that he was mistaken,” wrote Rosenstein.

“Almost everyone agrees that the Director made serious mistakes; it is one of the few issues that unites people of diverse perspectives,” Rosenstein added.

The announcement was made minutes after the FBI released a letter clarifying testimony that Comey had given to Congress last week, centering on the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s emails; his testimony had overstated the number of emails possibly found on a computer belonging to ex-Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY), the husband of top Clinton aide Huma Abedin.

The news stunned official Washington, as Democrats immediately questioned whether it was an attempt to rein in investigations that could impact the White House.

“Comey should be immediately called to testify in an open hearing about the status of Russia/Trump investigation at the time he was fired,” said Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR).

On the other side of the aisle, most Republicans backed the President’s move.

“Best. Termination. Letter. Ever,” tweeted Rep. Lynn Cheney (R-WY).

“The handling of the Clinton email investigation is a clear example of how Comey’s decisions have called into question the trust and political independence of the FBI,” said Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA).

“Many, including myself have questioned his actions more than once over the last year,” said Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) of Comey.

President Trump made the right decision to relieve FBI Director James Comey of his duties.